本当の雅: Hontou no Miyabi
by leeksandmisosoup
Summary: It started a long time ago, with him watching over her. Who knew their relationship would go from silent watcher and oblivious subject to lovers? This is their story from their beginning to their end. Inu no TaishouXIzayoi SPOILERS from 3rd movie.


**本当の雅 –****Hontou no Miyabi- True Elegance**

Summary: It started a long time ago, with him watching over her. Who knew their relationship would go from silent watcher and oblivious subject to lovers? He was supposed to be taiyoukai of the West, protecting and fighting for glory. She was supposed to be the hime-sama, ruling alongside her father. But it's funny how nothing works out that way. This is their story from their beginning to their end. Inu no Taishou/ Izayoi. SPOILERS if you haven't seen the third movie.

Disclaimer: InuYasha characters belong to Takahashi Rumiko, as well as plot, episodes, movies (like this one: Tenka Hadou no Ken)… which, well, sucks.

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**Prologue:**

"Izayoi! Izayoi!" Inu no Taishou's voice cried out, as he ran in to the courtyard after making a flashy entrance. The destruction of two Kaze no Kizu showed behind him.

A young man, Setsuna no Takemaru, smirked at him in the doorway. "I am the one who has sent Izayoi-sama to a place where you cannot reach her, mononoke."

"Baka ga!" Inu no Taishou's grip on Tessaiga didn't slacken.

The two rushed at each other, swords drawn. Of course, as Izayoi had told Takemaru, none could defeat him. Her words were true, for Inu no Taishou did not stop, nor slow, as he sliced Takemaru's arm cleanly off. The arm flew into the air, landing with a sickening splat on the ground a couple metres in front of him. The blood that gushed out of his shoulder stained his clothes red, and he barely had the strength to stay up. His knees ached, his only remaining hand pressed to the gaping flesh wound at his side. Blood ran down his forehead, trickling down the bridge of his thin nose

Inu no Taishou continued his search for Izayoi.

"Burn the place down! Along with the mononoke!" Takemaru yelled to his archers.

They quickly dipped their arrows in oil and then placed them at the torches, effectively making a burning flame. They took aim and fired at will, the fire catching on to the rice paper of the shoji doors and the dry timber.

Inside, Inu no Taishou cried his love's name. "Izayoi!"

He found her deceased corpse lying in a pool of her own blood, wrapped in her and his favourite kimono, with a wailing baby in her arms.

Drawing Tenseiga out of its sheath, he quickly focused his eyes on the messengers from the Underworld. "I'm counting on you, Tenseiga."

He slashed at the naturally unseen prey, ears tuned to hear the first sign of Izayoi's breathing. Her sharp intake of breath eased his heart.

He took out the fire rat haori he had had since he was a small boy. Placing it tenderly on her head, he helped her stand. She leaned her weight on him, trying to ease her aching limbs from the pain of child birth. They both stared lovingly at each other and their newborn hanyou baby.

Unfortunately, their moment was cut short, for Takemaru had returned, sword drawn, one arm missing, and ready to fight.

Inu no Taishou would always protect what was his.

He pushed Izayoi behind him. "Inuyasha."

The two adults looked at him funny.

"Nani?" Takemaru shouted.

"The child's name is Inuyasha," Inu no Taishou repeated. Izayoi smiled at his choice of name, and hugged their baby tight against her chest. "Now, go!"

Izayoi obeyed, and took Inuyasha as she ran out the back. Once she was safely out, she turned around and saw her "Anata" and Takemaru-sama.

Inu no Taishou had drawn Souunga, the sword containing the dragon from Hell, out. The tell-tale beginning signs of Gokuryuuha showed as the black dragon slithered around the upright sword. Instead, Inu no Taishou chose not to use it. Their swords clashed, a loud metallic ring filling the air.

The arrows lodged in his arm began to make it ache. It would be worse if he had pulled them out. And the wound he received from Ryuukossei, the annoying ryuu youkai, bled freely over his white haori and hakama. The deep gash gave him pain, but he would not let this impudent man, the one who had killed his Izayoi, defeat him.

Izayoi stood ankle-deep in the snow, watching as the two most important people in her life waged a war on each other. The metal against metal sound reached even her. The fierce burning sound of the flames coupled with the swords clashing made the baby Inuyasha cry.

Inu no Taishou swung at Takemaru, effectively slashing across his chest. But that wasn't enough to bring him down. Takemaru fought on as he continuously bled, almost completely armless, tired, and angry.

"Izayoi-sama should have stayed dead!" he yelled over the crackling fire, red blood oozing down his chin. It made a steady drip on the floor. "And she never loved you!"

Inu no Taishou was frozen by those words, remembering the memories brought along by the words "loved" and "you". Memory upon memory continued to onslaught him.

A memory of them at the shiro, sitting in the enormous garden; her singing to him while picking him flowers.

A memory of them sneaking secret glances at each other across the dinner table.

A memory of them watching the stars out on the palace porch.

A memory of them in bed, late at night, cuddling and holding each other close. Naked.

And in every single one, she had told him "I love you." So what this cocky man had told him was pure ludicrous; for he knew she loved him, just as much as he loved her.

But the memory daze he had been put in was enough to give Takemaru a shot at him. The insignificant man swung the sword haphazardly into his wound from Ryuukossei. Inu no Taishou grunted in pain, his eyes closing, and images of Izayoi flashed against his eyelids.

Reaching over, he pulled the sword free from his pained side. Wrenching it out of Takemaru's grip, Inu no Taishou thrust his Souunga into Takemaru's abdomen. The man gasped, coughed out blood that splattered itself across Inu no Taishou's smooth face, and choked out a "Maybe she did…"

Inu no Taishou pulled his sword from Hell out of the dead man's body. A piece of falling wood came crashing down. Using his youkai reflexes, he managed to just dodge it. He ran to the other side of the room, where the fire hadn't consumed it as much. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a soldier come in and fetch Takemaru. He hoisted him onto his shoulder and carried him out of the burning castle. Probably to give him a proper burial…

A wave of pain came crashing down on the inu youkai. Inu no Taishou pressed his left hand to Ryuukossei's given wound. He hissed out in pain, his fangs biting into his lower lip. He had lost a lot of blood, and his vision was getting blurry.

Izayoi still stood in the snow, waiting for her love's return. Hoping… _praying_ for it, desperately. Her eyes were only focused on the burning castle, searching for his beloved face, clothes, pelts, or even his humongous dog form. Anything would do, just so long as she saw him. Alive.

Inu no Taishou shrunk to the floor, feeling pitiful and weak for having been done in by this wound. "Izayoi…" he groaned, wishing he could see her beautiful face one more time; wishing he could touch her one more time; even lay with her one last time. He didn't want to leave without her.

He collapsed onto the wooden floor, knowing no one was going to come back for him. He was, after all, the mononoke. No one would want him to come out alive. Save for Izayoi, but she was probably already long gone, honouring his last wishes.

"Izayoi, live on…"

His last words were uttered in her direction, before his hand went slack and his head fell with a thud to the floor. Right before the palace came down with a crash.

And as if Izayoi had heard her lover's words, she nodded her head. She had heard them, in her head. Her eyes welled up with the tears she wouldn't shed. He wouldn't have wanted her to cry for him.

Baby Inuyasha lay in her arms, wailing louder and tears falling faster. It was as if he knew that his chichi-ue had just fallen to fate.

Izayoi cradled him against her, rocking him back and forth. She ran forward in the snow, away from the burning wood of the place she used to call home, not looking back. Never looking back…

* * *

Sesshoumaru walked away from the cliff where he had last seen his father, alive.

"_Omae ni mamoru mono aru ka?"_

Inu no Taishou's last words to him floated back into his mind.

"Che."

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A/N: Wowza! This is an incredibly short prologue! I really want to do this story, but I don't know if I'll ever get around to it… Sigh… I want to upload the chapters, but I don't think I'll have enough time to even write them! I'm going to the Okanagan Lake in a couple days, so… Bah! I don't know. I feel very confused.

Japanese to English:

Taiyoukai - Demon Lord/ Greater Demon  
Hime-sama - Princess  
Tenka Hadou no Ken - Swords of an Honourable Ruler/ World Conquest's Swords (literal)/ Swords of World Conquest  
Kaze no Kizu - Wound of the Wind/Wind('s) Scar  
Setsuna no Takemaru - Takemaru of Setsuna  
Mononoke - Animal Spirit  
Baka ga! - Fool!  
Tessaiga - Iron Crushing Fang  
Tenseiga - Heavenly Life Fang  
Haori - Japanese formal coat  
Hanyou - Half-demon  
Nani? - What?  
Anata - You; when said to a loved one (husband) like here, it's Dear  
Souunga - Cloud-mass Sword  
Gokuryuuha - Twisted Dragon Blast/ Dragon Twister  
Ryuu - Dragon  
Youkai - Demon  
Hakama - Japanese men's formal divided skirt (so says translator, but it's really a type of pants made out of one piece of cloth that you tie together to make the pants)  
Shiro- Castle  
Inu - Dog  
Chichi-ue - Humble/Dear Father  
Omae ni mamoru mono aru ka? - Do you have something which you protect?  
Che - Believe it or not, but it is a Japanese saying. It could be "Shit" but I used it as a scoff kinda thing. Like when Inuyasha says "Keh" all the time.

Japanese Names:

Inu no Taishou - Dog General/ General of Dogs/ Dog's General/ Dog Boss/ Dog Admiral/ Dog Leader/ Leader of Dogs, etc. (Not really his name, just his title)  
Izayoi - is, well, Izayoi since it's written in hiragana…  
Inuyasha - Dog Demon  
Takemaru - his name could mean many things, like: Military Perfection/ Warriorship  
Sesshoumaru - Killing Perfection (which I heart to death! He's my all time fave + Inu-Papa)/ Killing Life Circle (I think Killing Perfection sounds much better and _way_ cooler)  
Ryuukossei - Large Dragon Spirit (I'm a little sketchy on that)

Ah hahahaha! I think the Japanese list makes this prologue much longer.


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